A profile of a man with a dark mustache and big nose

Art Historical Context

José Guadalupe Posada, a Mexican printmaker active during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, this intimate woodcut profile around 1880–1910. Titled *A Profile of a Man with a Dark Mustache and Big Nose*, diminutive print (just 1 3/16 × 1 1/8 inches) captures a sharply defined male silhouette with exaggerated facial features—hallmarks of Posada's satirical style. Working in Mexico City amid the Porfiriato era and the lead-up to the Mexican Revolution Posada produced affordable broadsheets and illustrations for newspapers, using bold, high-contrast lines to comment on society, politics, and daily life. Woodcuts like this one were Posada's signature medium, carved into wood blocks and printed in black ink on inexpensive paper, allowing mass dissemination to everyday audiences. This technique emphasized stark outlines and dramatic shadows, making the image pop despite its tiny scale—ideal for vignettes in larger publications. Posada's caricatured portraits, often humorous or critical, influenced later Mexican artists like Diego Rivera and the muralists, cementing his role as a folk hero of graphic art. Today, this print from the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints collection (gift of Jean Charlot, 1930) offers a glimpse into Posada's prolific output of over 20,000 works. Its simple profile invites us to ponder the everyday men who shaped Mexico's turbulent history.

About the Artist

José Guadalupe Posada · 1852–1913

José Guadalupe Posada (1852-1913) was a Mexican printmaker and engraver who revolutionized popular art and created some of the most iconic images in Mexican culture. Working primarily with publisher Antonio Vanegas Arroyo, he produced over 20,000 images during his career—inexpensive broadsheets sold for a penny on colored paper that made his art accessible to even the poorest workers. He transform...